Isadora had taken admission in a baking course and her classes ended right before the busy hour started at the coffee shop. The first week was a little difficult to manage but then she adjusted quite well.
On every Friday, Dora's Coffee Haunt had an experimental display containing the samples Dora baked of all the baked items she learnt such as cakes, pastries and different types of cookies.
So far both her studies and the shop's business was going quite smoothly and with Alex cutting down on the number of his jobs, she got to spend time with him too for which she was very pleased.
It was quite unexpectedly sunny that day in Gotham city as she stepped out of the institute. All the citizens seemed to be affected by a very cheerful mood due to the pleasantly sunny weather since the city was used to gloomy rainstorms and such days were rather rare.
However, her cheerful mood brightened even more when she saw Tim waiting for her outside and she made her way to him immediately.
His radiant smile lit up his features as she approached him and entwined her hand through his, "surprise..."
She laughed lightly, "a very pleasant one, I must add."
"Even the sun decided to surprise us all today," Tim remarked as he led her to his motorbike, "and since the weather is absolutely lovely, I thought I might take you out for a little sightseeing."
"Sounds great," she smiled, taking her seat behind him on the bike, "and where exactly are we going for the sightseeing?"
"Somewhere special," he remarked vaguely though a smile was playing upon his lips, "you'll see soon."
"Looks like you have a series of surprises planned out for today."
"You could say that," he agreed.
Tim drove away from Central Gotham and to the lesser known parts of the city, almost out of its boundaries. Dora noticed how the urban landscape had started to fade as the road narrowed and lush greenery began to start on both sides of the path.
The bike came to a halt in a lush green meadow with flowers dancing in the breeze. The place seemed so different from the gloomy character of Gotham and Bludhaven that Dora was completely speechless for a moment.
"Welcome to our family's favorite picnic spot," Tim announced as the two got off the bike and he offered her his hand to take.
"It's beautiful," she breathed inhaling the fresh air deeply, "are we really in Gotham?"
"Nope," he shook his head, a smile playing upon his lips, "if it was Gotham, it wouldn't have been so pleasant."
"True enough."
A light laugh escaped her as he tucked a pale yellow flower in her hair.
"So how did you guys find this beautiful place?" She asked as they sat down under a tree that provided a cool shade from the sun, rays filtering in through the thick canopy of the fresh green leaves.
"Dick used to come here for picnics with his parents before Bruce had taken him in," Tim explained, "then one day he took all of us to this place when it was his turn to choose the picnic spot for our rare family trips out of Gotham. And since it's so calm and refreshing, all of us loved it and have been visiting ever since then."
"It really is very refreshing," she remarked, closing her eyes as she took in another deep gulp of the freshness of the atmosphere, leaning against the trunk of the tree.
Tim took his time in observing her, a soft look of adoration evident in his bright blue eyes. Isadora Beaumont had become the light in his otherwise dull life riddled with responsibilities and burdens that he managed to disguise from the rest very well.
And since she was his light, he couldn't bear to let her get snuffed out.
If there was one thing that he needed even more than his daily dose of caffeine, it was seeing the beautiful smile on her face.
The trauma she had suffered due to the whole Scarecrow incident had hung like a dark cloud over them but with time, sunlight had began to filter in and Tim was relieved to see that the darkness had faded into light once again.
Her brown eyes fluttered open and she caught him staring dreamily at her as if lost in thought and a smile crept over her features. "What are you thinking, Tim?"
"Just thinking how lucky I am," he remarked which made her break into laughter again and he joined in as well, leaning forward to gently kiss her.
Her fingers ran through his fluffy brown hair, curling lightly at the soft strands that framed his face.
She always made him forget what lay ahead in future and that feeling of living in the present with no worries of the future held a special place in his heart.
And just like that, he forgot for a moment that he had to leave on a very important case that night along with Bruce. He let go of the worries that had held him earlier and allowed himself to live in the moment.
Because life was short and there was no knowing what the future held.
When they pulled apart, Dora's hands lingered at his shoulders before he brought them down interlacing his fingers through hers.
"Dora, tell me truthfully, how do you feel right now?" He asked and his eyes were focused on her as if genuinely interested to know her answer.
"I feel so light. It's almost as if I'm walking on air," she mumbled after thinking it over in her head for a short while, "I could spend an eternity like this, Tim... With no worry clouding over me and you by my side."
He had mainly brought her to that place because he wanted her to feel better and he smiled seeing that had been accomplished. "That's good to know."
A while passed in comfortable silence until she spoke up, "do you have to tell me something?"
He knew she would ask that for she always seemed to know what was going through his head and he nodded, "yes. But you'll promise first that it won't ruin your mood."
She shook her head smiling, "could anything from you really ruin my mood?"
"I'm doubtful."
"Don't be."
Motivated by the certainty in her tone he spoke up, "me and Bruce have to leave tonight for a case. Even I don't know most of the details yet since it is League business and very confidential."
She was listening closely and didn't object as she let him resume.
"It might take a few weeks or even a month," he elaborated, "and even though Bruce had told me not to breath a word of it to anyone, I didn't want to leave without telling you. That would have been unfair on you and I didn't want you to get worried thinking that I left without even a proper farewell."
When he didn't speak further, she took in a deep breath as she asked, "but you'll come back?"
"I promise."
She was silent for a short while but then she flung her arms around him, wrists crossed at the back of his neck, "so that means this is our last date for a long time?"
"Yeah, I guess so."
"Then we must make the most out of it, right?" A smile played upon her lips because she had promised him not to let that spoil her mood and Dora always kept her promises.
He smiled as well, blue eyes glistening in relief, "right."
She leaned forward and kissed him as sweetly as possible, her eyes falling shut as she dissolved in his tender embrace. He held her close by the waist and let her deepen the kiss, savoring the moment for as she had said the two were going to be apart for a long time after that and both wanted to make the most out of their time together.
"Thank you for telling me. I would have been very anxious if you disappeared without a trace and that too for as long as a month," she mumbled as they pulled apart and he nodded in reply, nose brushing against hers.
"I won't be able to contact you but I'll be thinking of you every minute."
Her light laughter resonated in his ears as she remarked, "don't think of me too much that you forget to concentrate on your case."
He laughed as well, nodding in agreement, "as you wish, my lady."
***